Influential Woman · Major Construction Projects

Mary Zinchiak

Senior Safety Specialist, The Whiting-Turner Contracting Company

Xenia, OH

Certifications · Degrees · Memberships

Degree Bachelor of Arts in Science in Mathematics Degree California Polytechnical State University (Cal Poly Pomona) Degree Associate Degree in Mathematics Degree Consumnes River College Degree Associate Degree in Architecture Degree American River College Cert OSHA 500 Cert OSHA 510 Cert OSHA 511 Cert OSHA 5119 Cert CHST (Certified Health and Safety Technician) Cert CSHO (Construction Safety and Health Official) Cert Certified Safety Manager Cert Certified Safety Technician Cert Technical Safety Specialist Cert Safety Management Specialist Member BCSP (Board of Certified Safety Professionals)

Her Story

About Mary

I started my career in medical insurance on the claims end, working for major players like Hartford and Blue Cross Blue Shield handling disability claims. When I got laid off in the 90s, I was a single woman with a house, mortgage, and bills to pay. A friend suggested I apply to a refinery, and against incredible odds, I landed one of 30 positions out of 3,000 applicants after four months of testing. I initially wanted to work in their laboratory, but it was a union shop and I had to work wherever assigned for three years. During that time, management noticed my work, especially how I talked to people and did job walks. They approached me about going into safety, and I jumped at the opportunity because it meant no more alternating day and night shifts. I spent months training the refinery's 700 employees for VPP status. When the refinery shut down around 2017 because California was going green, I invested in my future by attending the OSHA Training Institute and earning all my California and federal certifications. I got my 500, 510, 511, and 5119 certifications, which allowed me to become an OSHA trainer. When COVID hit, those certifications kept me employed doing training via Zoom. In 2018, I moved from California to Ohio because it was getting too expensive and crazy. After COVID, I transitioned into construction safety, working on mega-projects like electric vehicle battery plants for Ford, GM, LG, and Honda. Now I'm working on AI data centers, which are going up all over Ohio. I've worked my way up from field safety to safety manager, running a staff of safety professionals on multi-billion dollar projects. My typical day starts early at 6 or 6:30 with toolbox talks, stretch and flex exercises, and then managing reports, head counts, and walking the site to coach workers on safety protocols. I'm responsible for finding 150 people across 3 million square feet in case of emergency. I'm a people person and a coach, not a cop. I use real stories and relatable examples to help workers understand why safety matters, like reminding them that their kids might call someone else Daddy if they don't make it home. I've been doing this for 15 years, and now I run into people at different projects who remember my training, which tells me I'm actually making a difference.

Her Interview

Ten minutes with Mary

01What do you attribute your success to?

I'm a people person, and I can relate to my audience. When I'm training painters, laborers, or electricians, I give them relatable topics and watch their faces to see if they understand. If they get that little tilt to the head like they don't understand, I recognize that and adjust. If I'm training engineers or superintendents, I can whip through things faster because they have the experience and knowledge. I can relate to a variety of different people, especially when I'm doing training. And I learned my stuff. I really learned it. It's not like some folks who get an OSHA 30 and think they can do safety. You have to be able to glance at an excavation and see if there's anything wrong, because it could mean somebody's getting hurt. You have to know OSHA, the 1926 Code of Federal Regulations. It's a book about 3 inches thick. You don't have to know it verbatim because life is an open book test, but you need to know the answer if somebody asks you a question. You cannot make it up on the fly. So it's my knowledge and my effervescent personality.

02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?

Grow a thicker skin. I came into the construction and refinery world from an office, from a cubicle. Let's face it, guys are a little nasty when they're all working out in construction. They spit, they fart, they cuss, they'll make fun and interview you in a hot minute. Guys relate to each other differently than women, or how they treat women. Only 10% of the population of construction workers in safety are women, so you kind of have to adapt to the guy's world. Now, I'll say that with a grain of salt, because it does get a little bit regional. I've noticed that when I am in the South, and because safety is a management position, just culturally and because I'm not young, the men are much more respectful and they will listen to you more, because matriarchs are respected in the South. You go further up north or east coast, and they're jerks. I've had a lot of guys get crazy mad at me, but I can justify it in my notes. I'm not making up my own rules here.

03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?

It is work. Know your stuff. And I know this doesn't sound conducive, but you dress professionally. What that means on a construction site is you don't wear tight-ass jeans. You don't wear a low-cut top. You wear a colored shirt, whether it's a button-up or a polo. I myself have probably 20 different color polos. You need to wear and look the part. You need to look like management. And be able to relate to people. You're a coach, not a cop.

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